The present invention relates to the preservation of cellulosic materials, and more particularly, to an aerosol archival composition for preserving cellulose-based materials.
The deterioration of paper, books, manuscripts and newspaper clippings is well-known to librarians, archivists and scrap book enthusiasts throughout the world. The causes of paper deterioration are numerous and include inherent acidity, photodegradation, oxidation, and even microbiological attack under certain conditions. These factors combined with poor initial paper quality have severely reduced the permanence of cellulosic materials held by libraries, archival collections and scrap book enthusiasts.
Archival compositions for preserving cellulosic materials are known. Examples of such compositions are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,676,182; 4,522,843; 5,409,736; 6,080,448; and 6,342,098, which are hereby incorporated by reference. Most of the foregoing archival compositions are not adapted for aerosol application and/or have disadvantages, such as including CFC's. The archival composition of the present invention is adapted for aerosol application and addresses some of the disadvantages of the foregoing archival compositions.